Report ofNeospirorchis schistosomatoides Price 1934 (Digenea: Spirorchiidae) infecting a Green Turtle, Chelonia mydas Linnaeus, 1758 (Testudines, Cheloniidae), from Brazil

Abstract

We report the occurrence of Neospirorchis schistosomatoidesPrice 1934 in a juvenile green turtle (Chelonia mydas L.1758) from the Brazilian coast. This species has been reported only in green turtles from the USA, Bermuda and Australia. Only two entire specimens and parts of six worms were found in the host’s heart. The collection, identification and morphometric data of intact specimens of N. schistosomatoides are rare and restricted to the original description. This paper presents the first report of N. schistosomatoides in green turtles from the western South Atlantic Ocean.

Keywords

• brazil
• chelonia mydas
• digenea
• green turtle
• neospirorchis schistosomatoides
• spirorchiidae